Reasons Why the Great Pyramids of Giza Remain the Only Surviving Wonder of the Ancient World: Drawing Ideas from the Structure of the Giza Pyramids to Nuclear Power Plants

Morsy, Samia Wafik; Halim, Mohamed A.

doi:10.17265/1934-7359/2015.10.007

Cited by 3 publications

(5 citation statements)

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“…Later, explorers reported massive piles of rubble at the base of the pyramids left over from the continuing collapse of the casing stones which were subsequently cleared away during continuing excavations of the site. Nevertheless, many of the outer casing stones around the base of the Khufu Pyramid can be seen today in site, displaying the same workmanship and precision as has been reported for centuries [19]. Table 1 represents the Earthquakes causing intensities VII or greater near Giza area.…”

Section: Dynamic Actionsmentioning

confidence: 64%

“…The instrumental seismicity map indicates that the pyramids site is characterized by very low seismicity setting [19].…”

Section: Dynamic Actionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Since this is the last major earthquake affecting the monument, it is possible to assume that the present deformed form and the cracking of the inner chambers and the inner and outer stone layers [26][27][28][29]. According to the Egyptian newspaper Al-Ahram in 13 October 1992, several small outer casing blocks on the top of the great pyramid and [19]). b Response spectra for rock and soil sites (after, Krishna [20]).…”

Section: Dynamic Actionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It is noticed that the Great Pyramid was built on a carved outcrop using the existing topography at the time of its construction. The part of original hill constitutes 23% of the volume for the Khufu/Cheops Pyramid and the carved outcrop constitutes 11.5% of Khafre Pyramid [19].…”

Section: Construction Of the Pyramids Of Gizamentioning

confidence: 99%

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Sustainability problems of the Giza pyramids

Hemeda

Sonbol

2020

Herit Sci

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The Pyramids complex in Giza consists of three main pyramids in addition to the famous Sphinx and small queen's pyramids. Recently, the pyramids of Cheops (Khufu), Chephren (Khafre) and Mykerinos (Menkaure) on the Giza plateau have been threatened by a rising groundwater table resulting from water leakage from the suburbs irrigation canals, and mass urbanization surrounding the Giza pyramids. The pyramids at Giza suffer from a lot of Geo-environmental and structural problems. The main objectives of this study are (1) to assess the current status of the preservation of this unique and high valuable archaeological site, (2) to analyze the various actions that cause the destruction of the pyramid complex, in particular the weathering activities and strong seismic event, and (3) to determine the geochemical and engineering properties for construction materials using different types of tools and advanced analytical and diagnostic techniques. Structural stability analysis requires good assessment of present conditions of major materials used such as stones and structural mortar. The paper shows a thorough analysis of the current condition of the Great Pyramids at Giza. The work includes a discussion and analysis of the natural character and source of the pyramids building stones, geological context, damage survey, petrographic investigation, and physical and mechanical characterization of the stones and structural mortars, by means of laboratory and in situ testing. The results are displayed, described and analyzed in the paper in the context of potential threats to the monuments. The experimental study indicates the dependence of mechanical geological properties on the physical properties and the mineral composition of the studied building materials. The physical and petrographic characteristic of the stones are related. The modeling of properties indicates a reliable relationship between the various visible pores and uniaxial compression force parameters that can be applied to predict and characterize limestone elsewhere.

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Section: Dynamic Actionsmentioning

confidence: 64%

“…The instrumental seismicity map indicates that the pyramids site is characterized by very low seismicity setting [19].…”

Section: Dynamic Actionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Dynamic Actionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Construction Of the Pyramids Of Gizamentioning

confidence: 99%

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Sustainability problems of the Giza pyramids

Hemeda

Sonbol

2020

Herit Sci

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“…This research focused on the Giza complex situated at 31 • 7 46.369 E and 29 • 58 30.734 N, which includes the Great Pyramids, funerary, and temples. This area is situated on a plateau approximately 66 m above sea level [41]. The study area includes the Great Pyramid (the pyramid of "Khufu"), which was built in the mid-20th century BC for the fourth-dynasty pharaoh; the pyramid of his son, "Khafre" (the middle one in size), is slightly smaller than that of Khufu; and the pyramid of "Menkaure" (his grandson), which is the third smallest in size and forms a complex beside the Sphinx [42].…”

Section: The Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Multi-Sensor Satellite Images for Detecting the Effects of Land-Use Changes on the Archaeological Area of Giza Necropolis, Egypt

Elfadaly,

Zanaty,

Mostafa

et al. 2024

Land

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The World Heritage Committee has been meeting to discuss the arrangements of existing World Heritage Sites, and, on 22–26 October, the area from Giza to the Dahshur was included in the list of World Heritage Sites. According to the Egyptian Antiquities Authority (EAA), the groundwater levels at the Pyramids Plateau are too shallow, which threatens the ancient Sphinx and Pyramids in Giza, Egypt. In addition, many geophysical studies have been carried out in the archaeological area of Giza, which prove that the area is facing the risk of a high level of groundwater, specifically threatening the Sphinx. Recent developments in Earth observation have helped in the field of land monitoring such as land use changes, risk observation, and the creation of models for protecting cultural heritage sites. This study aimed to examine the impact of land use changes on on the archaeological sites of the Giza Necropolis area by integrating various data sources including optical satellite imagery and SRTM data during the period of 1965–2019. A historical database of Corona 1965 and Landsat 2009 data was investigated along with the new acquisitions of Sentinel-2 2016 and Sentinel-1 2016 and 2019. In addition, the radar Sentinel-1 SLC data were collected and analyzed for calculating the land subsidence value in the area of interest through two periods between 6–30 July 2016 and 30 July–15 December 2016. Various methods were implemented, including cluster outliers, the Moran index, and spatial autocorrelation to examine the changes in urban masses. Additionally, the relationship between groundwater leakage and land subsidence in the region was investigated. The analysis was carried out using Envi5.3, ArcMap10.6.1, and SNAP6.0 software to extract spatial data from the raw data. The results from our investigation highlighted rapid changes in urban areas between 1965 and 2019. The data obtained and analyzed from optical and radar satellite imagery showed that changes in land use can cause changes in the topographic situation by decreasing the level of groundwater, which adversely affects Egyptian monumental pyramids and the Sphinx. Land use analysis showed that the urban area represented 7.63% of the total area of the study area in 1965, however it reached 32.72% in 2009, approximately half of the total area in 2016, and in 2019, the urban mass area increased to nearly two-thirds of the total area. The annual growth rate between 1965 and 2019 was estimated by nearly 0.642 km2/year. These land-use changes possibly affected the land subsidence value (−0.0138 m), causing the rising groundwater level close to the Sphinx. Using the information obtained from our RS- and GIS-based analysis, mitigation strategies have also been identified to support archaeological area preservation.

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The Concavity of the Great Pyramid Can Be Derived from Inward Sloping Courses Needed for the Stability

Kato¹

2023

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The Great Pyramid has the character of concavity that each of its four faces is slightly indented along its central line. Applying the geometry on an inclined plane, we show that this concavity could be derived from its inner structure of inward sloping courses gently inclined towards the center of each course, at about 11 degrees to the horizontal, i.e., the slope 1/5 by the ratio of "rise over run". We explain why the inclined layers together with the reinforced base were necessary for the long-term stability of the Pyramid against the severe natural forces like the high gravitational compression, earthquakes and rainstorms, pointing out the feasible fact that the Pyramid has experienced severe rainstorms more than 500 times during the 4500 years. The crucial point about stability is that the effects of such natural forces are quite different between the core of inclined courses and that of truly level courses in the sense that the former can be tightened to become stronger over time, but the latter would be disintegrated to be weaker over time. Scaled-down models of the Pyramid are introduced to understand the large-scale dynamics of the Pyramid. In particular, the small model reduced by 10 −3 helps us to imagine the transformation of vertical into lateral forces, pointed out by Mendelssohn. On the other hand, the Step Pyramid of Djoser can be identified almost as the half-sized model of the Great Pyramid when the Great Pyramid was assumed to be composed only of truly level courses. And this identification tells the fate of the Great Pyramid only of truly level courses that it would have almost collapsed until now like the Step Pyramid before the recent restoration.

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Reasons Why the Great Pyramids of Giza Remain the Only Surviving Wonder of the Ancient World: Drawing Ideas from the Structure of the Giza Pyramids to Nuclear Power Plants

Cited by 3 publications

References 0 publications

Sustainability problems of the Giza pyramids

Sustainability problems of the Giza pyramids

Multi-Sensor Satellite Images for Detecting the Effects of Land-Use Changes on the Archaeological Area of Giza Necropolis, Egypt

The Concavity of the Great Pyramid Can Be Derived from Inward Sloping Courses Needed for the Stability

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